From Japan to Abidjan: Students Explore Africa’s Development Future

The visit formed part of Sophia University’s Learn from Africa overseas study programme, which connects Japanese students directly with African institutions and communities.

Eleven students from Japan's Sophia University took their learning beyond the classroom during a visit to the African Development Bank Group's headquarters in Abidjan on 11 September, meeting staff whose work spans education, finance, infrastructure and industrial development. Accompanied by two faculty members, the students explored Africa's development opportunities and challenges through presentations, conversations and a guided tour of the institution.

The visit formed part of Sophia University's Learn from Africa overseas study programme, which connects Japanese students directly with African institutions and communities. It builds on an academic exchange partnership between the university and the Bank Group, established through a memorandum of understanding signed in March 2019 and renewed in 2025.

Bringing Students Closer to Development Work

The delegation, drawn from several academic disciplines, was welcomed by Tomoki Nakai, the Bank Group's Executive Director for Japan, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Austria and Brazil, and Dr Martha Phiri, Director of Human Capital, Youth and Skills Development. Representatives of the Jesuit University of Abidjan, known as CERAP, joined Bank staff for the visit, adding another university connection to the exchange.

Students heard from teams working on human capital and skills, resource mobilisation and partnerships, economic governance and financial sector development, and private sector investment, infrastructure and industrialisation. Question-and-answer sessions gave them space to explore the issues raised in each presentation, with direct conversations offering a closer view of how the Bank approaches development across the continent.

Nakai described university partnerships as an opportunity to exchange knowledge, encourage young people in Africa and Japan to pursue their ambitions, and prepare future development leaders. His remarks connected the students' experience in Abidjan with the wider role that education and international cooperation can play in supporting Africa's sustainable development.

Young People Take a Central Place in Africa's Future

Phiri placed young people at the centre of Africa's transformation, explaining that investment in their potential is an institutional priority under the Bank's Ten-Year Strategy for 2024–2033. She linked this commitment to its third Cardinal Point, "Harnessing Demographic Transformation for Economic Development," which focuses attention on the economic opportunities associated with the continent's demographic changes.

Cooperation with universities, governments, development partners and businesses remains important to that work, Phiri told the delegation. The visit allowed students to see how youth development connects with other areas of the Bank's activities, from skills and education to the financing and infrastructure that support economic opportunity.

Scholarships and Exchanges Deepen Africa–Japan Ties

The university visit sits within a broader relationship between the Bank Group and Japan that includes support for African students pursuing advanced education. Through the jointly implemented Japan Africa Dream Scholarship programme, 46 students have received scholarship awards, including 32 who were awarded full scholarships to attend partner universities in Japan.

Five scholarship recipients have pursued master's degrees in Global Environmental Studies at Sophia University, giving the institution a direct role in the education partnership. These academic links create opportunities for exchange in both directions, with African students studying in Japan and Japanese students gaining first-hand experience of African institutions and communities.

The Bank Group expanded these connections through the Africa-Asia Platform, launched in 2025 to promote knowledge exchange, innovation, entrepreneurship and sustainable industrialisation across the two continents. The Abidjan visit brought a personal dimension to that cooperation, allowing students to ask questions, meet development professionals and deepen their understanding of the issues shaping Africa's future.